Ten Ten Seafood and Grill, West Colonial (50)

I tried them at lunch on Thursday. In the Golden Sparkling something or other strip mall at Kirkman. I think I alerted you to them (their build) almost two years ago. They said they finally opened a few months ago. One other location in Sunrise (wherever that is). It's a mostly Cantonese menu. Dim sum even. That is what I ended up having. Language issues. I had: beehive fried taro (3 for $4), har kow/steamed shrimp dumplings (4 for $5) and lobster fried shrimp balls (3 for $5). All were large sized. The taro was new to me and good. Had the look of crazy frizzed out hair. Mushroom and maybe pork inside. Also had a slight seafood taste. Let's hope it wasn't cream of sum yung gi. Dumplings were not great. Pasty. Mostly shrimp goo inside. Not real shrimp. Thick skin. The balls were good. Covered in ribbons of dough. Like the stuff you put in wonton soup. Probably the same goo as the dumplings inside. It just cooked better this way. They have a big dim sum and regular menu Here are a few of the crazy things: durian crisp, fish egg curry, sweetbreads, spiced salt water, pig ear, fuqi feipian, spring fish, zilling, whiteboard fish, frogs, pigeon, sea cucumber, jellyfish. Let's hope some of those are misprints. Most platters in the $16-$22 range. Beef, chicken, pork, seafood, tofu. Free tea. One open room. Three columns of mostly family tables. Huge wall tv playing music videos. Traditional decor. They had a decent crowd. Crowd started off Asian and then filled in. Pretty good attempt. Way better and cheaper than Dim Dim Sum or whatever that was. May have best dim sum in the area. Not a high bar though.

*I also was going to try a chicken place (Pollo Chicken) a little farther west on 50. I turned out to be a Haitian place. They didn't change the name. It looked creepy (dark) and the prices were ridiculous. But, if you feel the need. Now you know. There are a few places around there that offer up that type of food now. And I saw a new Korean BBQ place in the strip mall across from Chinatown.

Grub Crawl - Oviedo and Winter Springs: Japanatolia, Oyishi, Heart of Jerusalem and Kabuto *VT/NH/ME/NY Travel Notes

I tried these places at lunch on Saturday. The first two are in or near the food court at the Oviedo Mall. The last two are in the strip mall on the near right side of Red Bug Lake Rd (Tuskawilla?) coming from 436. It was a surprise that the first two made the better dishes.

Japanatolia - A fusion of Turkish and sushi. Kind of. They only sell five rolls. And they are barely Japanese. More Eastern European menu if anything. No fish. Mostly veg. Only rolled in roast beef. One was rolled with collard greens. At $8+ I deviated from the plan. Oh. It's also not a restaurant. It is a stall. I did settle on the chicken in bechemal sauce with rice and mashed potatoes and salad. It was very good. Very rich. Cost $10. Lots of tender chicken. Some pieces seemed like they were ground chicken. Some whole pieces. Bechemal was fine. Mashed potatoes were very rich. Rice was ok. A little mushy. Salad was just carrots, etc in vinegar and oil. They had a few other hot dishes. One with meatballs. They gave me a sample of a lemon semolina dessert. It was good. I think the owner said he was from Istanbul. And the logo has the bridge that spans the Bosphorous on it. Maybe they call it Anatolia because that is the Asian part and Japan is in Asia? Not what I expected, but, acceptable. Very good for a mall stall. And if you need a Dr Oz impersonator, see the cook. Open a month.

Oyishi - They have a decently appointed restaurant with hibachi tables and a bar and a sushi bar. A little aged. Way better than the to go area. I popped into there because this was not planned. That area looks like a worn out Chinese take out place in a dirty city. I ordered the salmon (smoked) and avocado and cream cheese roll for $7 because they didn't look trustworthy to deliver the hibachi side and my stomach had been waiting for sushi. It was a shock. I'm not sure if they made a mistake, but, they gave me two 8 piece rolls. The rice was done correctly. The ingredients were fresh. Came out fast. They also do teriyaki, hibachi, bentos, etc. Probably has been open for years.

Hearts of Jerusalem - The worst of the four. And I expected it to be the best. Arab Jerusalem cuisine. The menu said they have three in Colorado Springs. Open for one year. I tried the $14 Ultimate Plate after they tried to up sell me to a $23 kebab plate. It had thin, non-descript lamb/beef gyro meat and terrible chicken shwarma. Also a Greek salad (best thing) and bland hummus and raw pita triangles. I suspect the gyro meat was not even shaved. And definitely not from their own slab. The chicken looked like the stuff you get from a fast food restaurant/supermarket salad bar in their salads. Bag chicken. Plus some of that was even plastic-y. Frozen. No rice. Biggish menu. The usual suspects. Local color decoration. TV showing Medina. Three columns of tables. Japanatolia was way better.

Kabuto Sushi - I think it was Nagoya before. Only tried because I was there already. Plus I could see, if I did, that this could be a two cuisine food war post. Compare and contrast. I tried the Alaska Roll for 47. Only 1 roll this time. 8 pieces. Fresh salmon. No cc. Avocado and cuke. It was ok. Salmon was a bit soft. Looks good inside. Black and modern. Small. They said kabuto is the hat samurais wear. Open for two years. Menu looked good. Ramen+. 

Travel Notes - Vermont/New Hampshire/Maine/New York: Flight to Albany cost $182. Rental car (Budget) cost $436 for week. Spent the first night in Latham NY at a Microtel for $107 because late night flight got in two hours late. Ate a breakfast Beach (cinnamon and vanilla icing) donut at Duck Donuts because I saw a billboard. Drove north on 4 to Saratoga NHP. Continued up to 30 and 7 to Middlebury VT. Saw the college. Continued north to Burlington. had a cream cheese and tuna fish bagel at Feldman's Bagels. It was as bad as it sounds. Or more correctly, couldn't taste the cc. The road it was on had a lot of interesting looking food options. Went east on 89 to Richmond. Went to Cochran's Ski Area. Like 4 Olympian skiers learned there. It was just some guys backyard hill. Saw it on ESPN or 60 Minutes. Further east to North Woodstock NH. Stayed at the Inn 32 for $137. Ate falafel plate with naan and beer at Pemi Public House. Had a beer at Woodstock Inn Brewery. Went to Franconia Notch SP. Just north. Flume Gorge for $21. Aerial tram at Cannon Mountain was $29. Didn't do. Went back to town and saw a place called Clarke's Bears and Hobo RR. The RR was $20, but, just left. Ate an egg and cheese muffin and a great Rueben at White Mtn Bagel in Lincoln NH. Took 112 east to 11 to Maine and up 202 to avoid tolls to Augusta. Then 3 to Belfast and 1A up to Bangor for the same reason. Stayed at a shit box called Queen City Inn for $114. Up 95 to Medway and then Millinocket to Baxter SP and Mt Kahadin (Appalachian Trail northern terminus). $16. Back south on 95 to Orono. Saw University of Maine. Down 15 to Deer Island and Stonington. Had a $26 lobster roll at Stonington Ice Cream Company. Not bad. Back up and over to Belfast. Stayed at Yankee Clipper Motel for $130. Ate at Young's Lobster Pound. Bad (boiled) 1 1/8 lobster for $26. Nice view though. Got 4.5 stars on Yelp. Went to Rockland to buy ferry tickets. Had half dozen Damariscotta River oysters for $16. Very good. Bought round trip to North Haven Island for $17. Spent rest of day driving the coast off 1. 32 to Pemaquid Point Lighthouse. 27 to Booth Bay. Etc. Back to Rockport for a cheese and herb flatbread at American Flatbread. Slept in Rockland at the Ledges on the Bay for $140. Great view. Bought some cheese and wine and Joseph's by Riverside from Lawrence MA hummus and ate it looking over the ocean. Took ferry to North Haven. Not much there and most things weren't even open. Saw it on tv. The draw was the Nebo Lodge restaurant. Closed. Went up some path to Ames Knob. Good view. Nice ferry ride. Drove south on 1 again to Waldoboro. Grabbed some clam strips and a hd at Delano Seafood Shack. Farther down to Brunswick. Slept at Relax Inn for $102. Down 1 to Wells. Had haddock bites and clam chowder at Wells Beach Lobster Pound. Had bad mussels at Baston River Fish Camp Brewing. Beer was good. All other food dishes looked great. They just opened. Stayed at Anchor Inn for $116 (they tacked on a RF that I will dispute). Took 9 west through Concord to 393 to 202 to 9. Stopped at Franklin Pierce Homestead in Hillsborough NH. To Brattleboro VT. Had a great Roundabout Russian on Marble Rye (T and CH and Sprouts) at Vermont Country Deli. On to Bennington. Saw the college. You should read Rules of Attraction to see why. Onto Albany/Latham and I had cannoli ice cream at Control Tower. Plane left on time. Gas was around $5 everywhere.

** Some interesting ice creams; coffee brandy, vanilla and eclair crunch swirl with red caps (Maine Lobster), vanilla and raspberry jam with caps (Maine Black Bear), espresso and heath bar (Maine Deer Tracks).

Grub Crawl - Florida Mall Area and SoDo: Maguro, Daana Pani, Frenchy's and So Dough

I tried these places on Thursday night. The first is around the mall on the Sand Lake Rd side. The second is on Doss Ave and OBT in the Lakshmi Market. The third is at Gatlin Hall on South Orange. The fourth is on Michigan aside Tin & Taco.

Maguro Latin Fusion - Closed on Tuesday. Open after 3pm. Owner/chef is Puerto Rican. Fusion sushi menu. I tried some tapas as I was on a run. I tried two pieces of tuna for $4 ($5 on menu). OK. Rice was good. Tuna tasted a little bitter. As if it had a a bath to preserve it. I had a ropa vieja egg roll for $5.50. It was ok. Also had sweet plantain in it. Pretty stuffed. A mayo dipping sauce. Maybe it could have used an acid or heat element to cut through the savory. And three chicken gyozo (out of the duck) for $6. Probably not purchased in a store. Steamed and one side fried. OK. Soy sauce dipping sauce. Smallish menu. Bowls, tapas, 4 types of sushi/sahimi (out of the salmon). Black, gray and wood interior. Open kitchen and sushi area behind four seats at a bar. Sixteen four person tables. There was another room of about six tables on the side. It was gated off. Loungy vibe. It was ok. Open for a year or so. I thought it would be a bit ritzier.

Danna Pani - It means rice and water. In the rear of the building. I just grabbed some potato and pea Punjabi samosas for $6. I was just looking to finally knock them off the list and it's all vegetarian and they were out of the falafel. Ok. More baked than fried. Big menu with these categories: apps, sandwiches, pav bhaji, chaat, paav, thali, indo-Chinese, curries, and pulati. I can't read my notes on the last one. Blue and yellow interior. Three rooms. A banquet room, the regular one and a market? Closed Tuesday. Lunch and dinner. Prices in the teens mostly. One dish at $20. North Indian style. They said Punjab and one other area that I didn't get.

Frenchy's Wood Fired Pizza - I had tried to bring this to you many times over the past few months. Always too early or late or they had something going on. Had a private party this day. However, they snuck in a Margherita for me. And didn't charge the $14. It was good. Good chew and char. Oily and moist and spongy dough. A bit too salty. They also offer 4 other pies and wings and meatballs and garlic sticks. Just a stall. Open from 5pm to 10pm. This will be on the Favorite's list. The free part didn't hurt their cause.

So Dough - They said their hard opening will be on July 26th. I tried the one with their cheese blend, etc for $12. It was very good. Crisp, oily crust. Light yet substantial. Soft. Four slices. Square. Detroit style. Garlic-y tomato sauce. Basil was more like a pesto. Order at a kiosk. They make a limited amount each day. They open at 4pm or 5pm. Busy. One guy told me they always sell out. "Open" for a month or so. This will be on the Favorite's list. Best thing on this grub crawl. And I don't prefer book looking pizza. 12 or so styles of pies. Or make your own.

Grub Crawl - Winter Park: Anejo Cocina and Chick'n Cone (Closed) *SC Travel Notes

I tried these places on Memorial Day at lunch. The first replaced Dexter's at the 17-92 and Lee Rd intersection. The second is in that strip mall on Lee Rd. I forget what things have been in that corner slot in the past.

Anejo Cocina - They said they have another in Oviedo. It looks alright. Murals. Blue on white tiles. Patio. Bar. Similar set up as always. I didn't really want to eat here, so, I just ordered chicken fajitas. They were ok. $14. Tortillas (3) were raw. Salsa and pico had no heat or flavor. Came on a super hot plate that turned the tasteless bean puree into paste. Rice and guac were ok. Service was ok. Big menu. They try and add to the usual suspects. Prices were a bit high. Exactly what I expected. The new "higher end" attempt at Mexican cuisine. Nothing special. Open for a couple of months.

Chick'n Cone - This place is a joke. They basically take chicken fingers and serve them three ways. The gimmick is the waffle come. They chop them up for this. Then they put them on a bun for a sandwich. And then sell them whole. Each way is too expensive. And say, worse than Zaxby's or PDQ or Huey whatever's.  I tried the least expensive. The sandwich for $8. Two pathetic fingers. Small. Rubbery pickles. Bun was ok. It is a chain. 30 outlets. 4 in Florida. Open for a month. Also sell mac and ff. You have to get out and walk in. That should eliminate most of you.

*Travel Notes - South Carolina: The trip started here because of a car accident or something that caused me to get off 95 at the first chance (only took an hour to get to it from the last). Slept in Mount Pleasant (this is outside Charleston) at a bad Sleep Inn for $123. Prices were high all over. Slept the next night at a terrible La Quinta at Ashley Point for $147. Ate ok shrimp and grits in West Ashley at Triangle Char and Bar. Ate lunch 1 the next day at Home Team BBQ. Good pulled pork taco and brisket taco. Ate lunch 2 at Lewis Barbecue (down the block). He taught or learned from Aaron Franklin of Austin. showed. I had an El Sancho Loco sandwich of pulled pork and brisket and hot guts sausage. Good. This is in an area under 26 and on the east side of town. A hip, new area they called downtown. I also went (while up there) to Edmund Oast's and Revelry Brewing. The first had a restaurant/market near Home Team. They said try the brewery a few blocks up and over. It was in a warehouse district with new shops. Good beer. Revelry too. It was near the bbq places. Don't know where or how I learned of all these places. I'll bet their Yelp ratings are good.  I also visited the American College of Building Arts while there. It was on a show (Samantha Brown). I also found a nice pier and park under the bridge in Mount Pleasant near the hotel. Excuse the run ons. I've been reading Gertrude Stein. I also tracked down the Old City Jail and Circular Congregational Church in Charleston (south). On the same show. I saw the River Dogs play the Green Hornets (Tampa Bay Rays A ball) at Riley Stadium. $20 for second row right behind home plate. $5 for parking across the street. I also saw in the market - apple fritter iced donut cookies. On the way home I stayed at an ok Motel 6 in Walterboro for $62. On the way up their were big delays south at the border between SC and NC. They were also slowing things down going both ways in Wilson NC. Slowed me down in Emporia VA too. and of course the daily crash near DC. That is one reason I took the path home that I did. some of these delays were for tree cutting. They closed a whole lane (of 2) to give them unneeded safety. A-holes!

Grub/Pub Crawl - Downtown and West Colonial: Deadwords Brewing, Brew Theory, Kang's Kitchen (Closed) and East Garden *NY/PA Travel Notes

I tried these spots on Sunday at lunch. The first one is near the Citrus Bowl. The second is near the Marriott in the Tech Village. The third is near the Lotte Market on West Colonial. The fourth is in Chinatown. I also saw that Taste of Chengdu opened again. All breweries now done again.

Deadwords Brewing - They opened in January. The place blew away my expectations. It looks great. It seems safe (in Parramore). They spent alot on it. It has ample parking. It is on the city side of OBT between Washington and Central. It has a (I'm probably getting this wrong) purple gray black tone. The inside is loft like. A bar in front of curios. It looks like a steam punk scientists library. The equipment is in a recess on the left. An open kitchen with a pizza oven in between. Everything is brand spanking new. I even think they had a patio. The beer was great too. And not me too (another blow to that movement). I tried a Westphalian lager and a Cascade Ale and some Scandanavian type I've never seen before. The brewer is latterly from Bend OR. He worked at Crux and Deschutes (see my travel notes on them). The owner is a lawyer. The food menu seemed ok too. Open from 4pm on weekdays. 11am on weekends. No Monday. A real surprise. May be my new fav.

Brew Theory - They brew for others. None of their own. Parking was a bitch. No free parking on Sundays like the rest of DT. You make a right on Pittman from the road under I-4. If you miss it, you have to make a big loop. The place is basically a factory outlet store/bar. They also have a Grilled Cheezus branch there. They said the factory has been there for seven years. The bar for one. Parking issue alone makes it a pass for me.

Kang's Kitchen - Turned out to be a chain. 5 locations. I thought they had some interesting back story. Oh well. It was good anyway. More things on the menu than usual (ie Korean Army Stew and beef tartare). I went with the pork bulgogi combo for $17 because I wanted to try the bean paste soup it came with. The pork was tender. Alot. Good rice. The soup was ok. Not sure they gave me the right one. Slightly spicy broth, veg, tofu. This one had lots of tough (over boiled) beef. Good bon chon. Gas grills. $36 all you can eat. Mostly Asian patrons. Open for three months. I tried to try them a while ago, but, not open for lunch during the week. Opens at 4 or 5pm. Open plan interior. Basic. Good service. Worth a spin.

East Garden - I've been waiting on them for over a year. I tried the salt and pepper baked shrimp. Did them half correctly. Still need someone to butterfly and depoop these suckers. 13 biggish shrimp. Ok condition. Menu is ambitious. Dim sum, sea cucumber, etc. They have 10 person dinners for $700. Most things are $20+. Even Kung Pao Chicken is $18. One big ceilinged, open room. A huge, beautiful mural in back. Black, wood, geometric designs on walls. Three columns of tables. Mostly Asian patrons. 2 servers. Worth a second look. Three interesting options side by side there now.

*Travel Notes - New York/Pennsylvania: I drove on 287 to 9N (past West Point) to Newburgh Hudson Valley). Had wine at Benmarl Winery and Stoutridge Vineyard and Distillery in Marlboro. The guy (Stephen Osborn) at Stoutridge was a savant. Learned so much. He's trying to make old school wines with flavors like soy and leather. It was a trip trying "old" vintages and deciding if they were disturbing or not. Or skunked. Still uncertain. He said banks made wineries (in the 80's-90's) sell their old inventories. Young wine trend wasn't caused by fruit bomb lovers. It was Wells Fargo! The liquor portion was even more instructive/impressive. He distills some stuff 30 times! Things like gin and vodka and whiskey. But also, mastic/mastiha, eau de vie, absinthe, pastis, oriole, fernet, bitters, grappa, silvovitz and kirsch. Just crazy. He served me "Swiss" absinthe dripped through a clay sieve. So sweet. He said alcohol is bitter because of acetones or something. It is sweet if they are removed. Most won't. Too costly. Everything I tried was great. He finds recipes from hundreds of years ago. I also bought a mastic with frankincense and myrhh called Three Kings. A real experience. I stayed the night at Crossroads Hotel for $130. I drove through some vineyards in Pine Bush: Brimstone Hill Winery, Baldwin Winery and Magnanini Vineyards. Didn't try them. Too early. Also went through Angry Orchard Cidery. I drove 87 to Scranton. Went to Steamtown NHS. Trains. Forgot to look for Dunder Mifflin stuff. Stayed at Comfort Suites in Moosic for $115. Was there (Moosic) to see Yankees Wilkes Barre minor league team. Didn't end up doing that. Had an ok meatball sub and slice at Gourmet Slice. Not a great town. Drove to Elverson PA to see Hopewell Furnace NHS at French Creek SP. An ironworks. Closed. Went past Yuengling's Brewery. Would have gone if they had signs directing you. Drove to Philadelphia. Saw Thaddeus Kosciusko's (A Pole who fought with us) NM and Edgar Allan Poe NHS. Also went for cheese steak at Woodrow's Sandwich Shop. It was on 3D the night before. It was good. Traveled out of Philly west on 3 (I think) to 30. To Lancaster. Stayed at Soudersburg Motel for $81. This was Amish country. Then drove to VA.

Grub Crawl - Winter Park and College Park: Riccup, Kos (Closed) and Thai Farm (Closed) *VA/MD/DE/NJ Travel Notes

I tried these guys on Saturday at lunch. The first two are in Winter Park. Near the 7-11 at Rollins College. The last is in the old Rusteak location on Edgewater. I also saw that a vegan place is opening (no one home) next to Soseki in the old Wine Barn location on Fairbanks. And Lale and Grato are on Park Ave now. In CP, Honolulu Harry's seemed about open. I'm always going to call in Hannukah Harry's (SNL skit?).

Riccup Korean Kitchen - Behind the 7-11. Open one month. They sell bowls and salads and noodles. Some sit down tables. I grabbed the cheapest - KFC with rice for $10. It was plentiful. Like Gojujang Orange Chicken. 18 Pieces. Thigh meat. Good rice (bap). Came with potato salad and pickled radish salad. They have other bon chon too. Sell bulgogi, Beyond meat, tofu, pork, etc. You could do worse. Parking is limited.

Kos - A coffee place around the corner. Norwegian owned. Grabbed an ice coffee for $5. What can I tell you. It was coffee. Small location. Small menu. Closed early in the week.

Thai Farm Kitchen - Open three months. Inside looks familiar. Maybe they added some gold paint. Better menu than most. Things like duck confit, crab stir fried rice, Thai sausage, laab, salmon,  etc. Menu says their place in NYC got NYT Best Bites in 2019. I had the Som Tum (green papaya salad) for $15. I hope it was papaya. some places use burdock root, etc. Dressing was good. Some field greens underneath. Two lame shrimp on a skewer. I believe it is usually served with beef. Been a while since I've had it. Most Thai places don't offer it any more. Came in a cute white bowl. Soda was only $2. Pretty empty. Big foot print. Private room. Bar area. Good parking in back. Service (3) was good. May be worth a return visit.

*Travel Notes - Virginia/Maryland/Delaware/New Jersey: I'm going to break up this road trip into three posts. I rented a car from Budget for $485 for two weeks. Stayed at bad Red Roof Inn in Fredericksburg VA for $77. Drove to outside DC and went to these national parks : Oxon Cove Farm/Park, Fort Washington Park (down the 202), Piscataway Park, Greenbelt Park (off 495). On to Baltimore and Fort McHenry. Then to Towson and Hampton NHS. Up the 1 to U of Delaware. East to New Castle DE. Stayed at Quality Inn for $120. Went to First State NHP. It's a preserved old town in New Castle. Over the bridge to NJ. On to Great Egg Harbor SRR (a river) at Mays Landing. Up north to Trenton to see the capitol. Through Princeton to Whippany NJ. Stayed at Extended Stay for $120. Rat hole. Down 40 to West Orange. Thomas Edison NHP. Up north to Patterson Falls NHP. I did stuff before and in between the rest. Back to Virginia. Wineries around Charlottesville. Pollack Vineyards. Veritas Vineyards. Good. Also drove by Septenary Winery (closed). Ate salmon and cous cous at Ralph Sampson's American Tap Room. Met him. Didn't seem 7'4". Slept at English Inn for $116. My buddy owns a diner called Villa Diner. Didn't try it. Drove down 15 to NC.

Grub Crawl - Maitland and Downtown: Fredster's, Cucina, Bread & Wine *NY/CT/RI Travel Notes

I went to the first place two weeks ago at lunch. It is off Maitland Blvd near Sam Snead's. You go under the overpass and down two blocks (near a baseball field) on Fennell St. The next two are downtown. The first is on Church St (middle). The second in on N Orange next to Neon Beach. I went to those on Thursday at lunch.

Fredster's - Reminded me of Copper Rocket. Better though. A bar with a big live music stage. The food was better than I expected. They called it a trigger fish banh mi. No baguette though. Kind of important element. Generous portioning of fish (3 pc). It was fresh. L, T, O also. Spicy remoulade sauce. Came with alot of sweet potato fries. I'm not a fan, but, good if you go for that sort of thing. It cost $13. Smallish menu. One pasta, ribs and eggplant roulade were the most distinctive offerings. Beers were $7. Soda more reasonable at $2.50. service was good. I think the owner is English. Three bars and a patio too. Big open room. TVs. Open three months.

Cucina Pizza and Bar - Their fifth outpost. I've dropped alot of coin at the original in Palm Beach. More at the bar than the restaurant. Food here is even worse than there. I tried the gyro for $11. I saw the plastic flowers on the table and my Spidey sense went into action. So, I ordered the cheapest thing to be safe. It was a small portion of frozen, pre-sliced, dry, jerky meat on an ok pita with unripe-ish veg. It said fries cost $2 on the menu. They said they are now including them. That kind of helped the transaction. The menu is huge. Too huge. All the Italian staples plus burgers and salads and other things. All above mid-teens. A slice is $4. You pay for atmosphere and zip code at the original. They don't have that. Nor were there any model like Amazons tending bar. At least not at lunch. And I doubt they get all the scions of old and new monied PB either. Just another spot. The place is earth toned. Metal seats. Wood tables. Bar in rear. Windows. Faces Artisan's Table. Probably a better choice food wise (haven't been there since they moved though). Open for five months. Half full. *Side note - the original location was once Au Bar. Look up William Kennedy Smith to learn one reason why it is infamous.

Bread & Wine - Much fancier than I was expecting. I thought it was a late nite (2am) crap shack. It's a nice restaurant with a decent (small) menu. I settled on the breakfast side. Red Waffles & Chicken for $13. It was good. The waffles especially. Soft. Freshly made. Chocolate taste. The chicken was just Arby's chicken fingers cut up. They also sell coconut pancakes, croissant sandwiches, french toast, av toast, dumplings, wings, fried rice, pasta, salmon and even a $45 steak. It's a long, deep room. Modern chic. Open for a few months. Opens at 8am.

*Travel Notes - New York/Connecticut/Rhode Island: I flew JB to LGA for $185. New terminal is open. Nice. Rental through Hertz for $411. Shuttle to Rental Location at Terminal A. No prob. Slept at a dump in Jericho because the flight had mechanical issue and got in near 11pm. Inn at Jericho for $105. Drove to two VCs (and William Floyd house) at Fire Island NS. Also saw a Flight 800 Memorial near one. Drove on to Montauk. Stayed at the Montauk Manor for $176. Worth it. Ate softshell crab sandwich and oysters at Hooked. Had beer at Montauk Brewing. Had very good wonton soup at Street Eats. Had good sausage and broccoli rabe sandwich at Blade + Salt. Had bad (chicken less) chicken curry wrap at Joni's the next day. Drove to North Shore. Stayed at Shorewood Inn for $130. Dumpy motel. But, it was weekend pricing out there. Had good wine at Coffee Pot Wines and Suhru Wines. Both buy their grapes. Work for other wineries during the day. Had a beer at Greenport Harbor Brewing. Had bad brisket and ok ribs at Meats Meat in Mattituck. It rained. Drove to Weir Farm NHS in Ridgeway CT. Drove to Southbury CT. Stayed at Heritage Hotel for $114. Ate at Bakers Dozen (bagel, donut, ham and cheese on Portuguese roll) in Pomfret. Drove to Pawtucket RI to see part of Blackstone River Valley NHP (Old Slater Mill). Drove back through Hartford. Saw Mark Twain''s House and Harriett Beecher Stowe's House. Drove to Bethel CT. Stayed at Microtel for $104. Ate chicken sandwich and fries at Royal Fish & Chips. Drove through Bedford Hills and Chappaqua. I lived there once. Ate a bolgna hero at Lange's Little Store. Drove to Sleepy Hollow and Tarrytown. Saw Jay Gould's Lyndhurst Mansion and tried to see Washington Irving's Sunnyside (closed). Stayed at Tarrytown House Estate for $156. Drove to Yonkers to see Untermeyer Park and Gardens. Drove to Bronx. Saw NY Botanical Gardens. Didn't really. Drove past. Already been as a kid and parking was $20 and entry was $35. Drove back to Long Island. Stayed at East Norwich Inn for $73. Went to Teddy Roosevelt's Sagamore Hill and Cemetery in Oyster Bay. Ate oysters and bad burger at Wild Honey. Had beer at Oyster Bay Brewing. Had baleadas (crepe like tortilla filled with egg and av and beans), cheese q and chicken tamale at Lourdes. Drove to Vanderbilt mansion in (closed) and Hecksher Museum in Huntington. Had lunch at Teddy's Bully Bar in Oyster Bay. Good chicken and apple panini. Drove to LGA. Gas was in mid to high $4's. Found routes to escape all tolls. Better trip than I expected. Too spent to proof read. Deal with any errors.

Grub/Pub Crawl - Sanford and Longwood: Yardery, Alebrije, Taksim, Nan and Pop's and Alestone

I tried these spots about ten days ago at dinner. The first one is downtown on 4th St (one block in from the action). The second is on 17-92 in a forever desolate strip mall between downtown and Seminole HS. The third is farther down 17-92 (past LM Blvd) in a strip mall that has that PR place I wrote about a while ago (Coqui)The next two are near that Colombian chicken spot I went to a few months ago near the lightrail station.

The Yardery - Food and drink were too expensive, so, I settled on a Twisted Tea for $5. First time. The regular beers were $7.50+. Didn't bother asking about the hard stuff. Small menu. I remember ribs at $26 and $16 burger. I think they were supposed to have some Montreal style bagels. Don't remember seeing that. The place is basically a tiny bar and outdoor area. Open one month. Closed on Monday. Was empty. Not sure what they bring to the table that wasn't already there.

Alebrije Mexican Grill - Better than I expected. They have a bunch of mezcal. Open for two months. A big square place. Nice colorful mural on the wall. They said the name has something to do with animals acting human like. Double check that if you will.  I had the chicken enmolodas (4) for the mole. The word seemed new. Like I've never ordered that before. Then I realized it's just like enchilidas (chilied). They mole it. The mole was mole poblano. Tasted of coffee, chocolate and raisins. Sweet. The chicken was blanched white. Like it came from a processor. In a bag. I'm seeing more of this.It was bland and bad. Tortilla was raw. Menu said $16. Receipt said $18. I also had a beer from Tulum I've never seen before. Menu was slightly adventurous. Many of the tried and true's too. Service was good. Place was empty. Closed on Monday. Bar in the middle of the room. Worth a gamble if you are in the area. They could use a little more in house prep. Chips and salsa were good (fresh).

Taksim Turkish Grill - Have driven by them for a while and yet they opened only five months ago. Building delays. An old 7-11. They did little to it. Typical Turkish menu. I tried the lamb adana wrap (they were out and put it in a pita) for $10. It was good. The place was empty. The two Turkish guys working there were nice. Taksim is an area in Istanbul.

Nan & Pop's Ice Cream Shop - The usual. Their hours are not. 3pm-. Had a cup of Eyes Wide Open for $4. Coffee like. Good.

Alestone Brewing - Just opened that week. The guy from Hourglass. 10 ozers were only $4 (take that Yardery). Tried a stout (six in all). It was good. They have twenty options already. Nice small, square room with patio. Wood. View of equipment. TVs. Sports. Pretty full.  Will go back soon.Open 7 days a week. 11am-close.

*Will have two more post by Tuesday. Last one will have travel notes.

Grub Crawl - UCF Area: Yummy Taste and Fat Shack *CO Travel Notes

I tried these two dogs on Wednesday at lunch. The first is in a strip mall across from the Waterford Lakes Mall. The second is in that strip mall I last reported from near UCF at University and Alafaya. I'd like to add (before we start) that the fat girl with the big tits on Channel 6 reminds me of the after photo of the younger sister from Sanditon. Do you see it?

Yummy Taste - Failed in all areas. AC wasn't adequate, so, I changed my sit down to a to go. I tried the cumin beef noodles for $12 because the regular was even costlier than that. It was bad. The beef wasn't overcooked, but, the noodles were. Probably reheated. Broke apart when twirled. Clumsily spiced. The rest of the menu was dull. Rabbit and some tiger skin thing were the only intriguing items. Most things were $16 - $22. Decor was bad. Service was slow. One waitress (not great with English) and (I'll wager) one cook. Menu had little description of the dish. I really can't find a reason for you try this place. Opened recently.

Fat Shack - The funny thing is I just was in Fort Collins where they started. A chain that ripped off the R U Hungry food truck from New Brunswick NJ gimmick off putting side dishes into a sandwich. Mark Cuban bought in. They are the first location in Florida. I grabbed a small Fat Bronco for $9. It had one chicken finger and one mozzarella stick and fries in tomato sauce. The fries were beyond soggy. The mozz was tasteless and rubbery. The chicken was inconsequential. As was the bun. A real expensive mess. They sell around a dozen of these and burgers and snacks. I'm not sure what the burgers cost. Their menu (with the prices) wasn't working. The place already looks twenty years aged and they opened a month ago. I don't hate the concept. It just needs to be done at least one quarter assed. And the prices are out of line. You can go to Arbys and get two sandwiches for $6 and mozz sticks for $3 and make yourself TWO better sandwiches. The original was on the Food Network.

*Travel Notes - Colorado: Flight there on Frontier was $206. Hertz was $445. Stayed night one at Baymont near airport for $100. Did recon on day one. Had sausage rarebit with broccoli and beer at Baker's Brewery in Silverthorne. Slept at Quality Inn for $93. Skied Arapahoe Basin for $99 with $52 ski rental. Had tots with pork belly and beer at Cabin Creek Brewery in Georgetown. Slept at Microtel for $115. Nice lake there. Skied at Loveland for $85 and $45 ski rental. Ate Italian sub at Enza's Deli in Silverthorne. Had a good steak and queso empanada at Lazo Empanadas at Bluebird Market. Had terrible tinga and carnitas tacos at Baja Chimayo at same market. Slept at Silver Inn for $105. Ate breakfast at Sunshine Cafe. Good trout and eggs. It started to blizzard, so, I had to change ski plans and head back down stream. Went to Idaho Springs and bathed at Indian Hot Springs for $20 (plus $7 for locker and towel). It was gross. Mainly because of the people. Had a disgusting pizza at Picci's. Had beer at Westbound & Down. Had beer and pastrami sandwich with fries at Tommyknockers. Slept at Columbine Inn (bad) for $106. Idaho Springs main street was cool. Though the charge for parking before 6pm. Drove through Denver north to Fort Collins. Had bad al pastor and carne asada tacos at Vatos. Had good carrot cake ice cream at Old Town Churn. Had interesting cheddar covered Liege style waffle at Waffle Lab. Slept at Armstrong Hotel for $126. Visited New Belgium Brewing. Ate trout and eggs (even better) at Silver Grill Cafe (in Esquire). Drove to Estes Park. Saw elk, etc. Drove through Rocky Mountain NP. Slept at Nicky's Resort for $78. Drove to airport and had bad lasagna at DiCicco's.

 I was going to try other ski areas, but, they were more expensive. Arapahoe had flex pricing. Loveland was constant rate. Both were way better than I expected. The more I go, the more I think you need to tell Vail and Aspen (et al) to go fuck themselves. It was in the 60's to start and then it dropped to the 20s. Crazy. Snowed over a foot after I left. The highway closed down. Fort Collins is cool. So many breweries and cideries and distilleries and restaurants. May be dearer than SLC in my heart now. Estes Park also had a nice lake. Nice drive there. Silverthorne is blowing up. Drove through Keystone (closed for season) too. Nice drive from Loveland to there over Loveland Pass. Found a cheap ski area called Echo near Idaho Springs. It had just closed though. No travel issues. Gas was cheaper there.

Grub Crawl - Mills Ave: Grilled Cheezus and Plantees

I tried the first place not this Monday but last. I tried the other yesterday. The first is in the old Bites and Bubbles location. The other is a little closer to Virginia.

Grilled Cheezus - They said they has a food truck and another location or two. The remodel really makes an already gloomy situation worse. They took out the bar and divided the room with a wall. They say a cookie company is hidden behind that. Now it's a tiny room with the kitchen in between. I ordered the basic grilled cheese because this trend is just stupid and of course it is overpriced stupidity to boot. It cost $9. It was good. Came with a thimble of uninspired too sweet tomato soup that did little to the experience. They press it in a waffle iron. Had to do a three cheese mix for some reason. Dusted it with some superfluous parmesan to make it seem fancy. They sell around ten others. Mostly simple add ins like bacon. Do yourself a favor and buy a waffle iron or a George Foreman grill (do they still exist) and use your allowance for something more deserving. Open for a month.

Plantees - The cultural antithesis of GC. A plant based, vegany, healthy, one item, fast casual option. They sell: a Beyond burger as a single or double, fries with cheese or without and shakes. I grabbed a single with vegan cheese for $10. Already you can tell I'm going to preface any analysis with - it's 2X too expensive. And it is. It was ok. The meat tastes like tv dinner meatloaf. Although, I didn't hate the mouthfeel or flavor. It didn't marry well with the very vinegary relish. The lettuce and tomato were very fresh. And the bun was perfect. Hopefully, they will maintain these freshness standards because that is all that justifies the premium price. If there is a justification. It is the first and only location. Seems ready to multiply. Very clean and modern look. Order at the counter inside with open kitchen. Patio dining area. Nice owners. Opened on Monday. Some off street parking. If you are going to waste your allowance on seemingly healthy (I wonder what the calorie count is) junk food while foolishly thinking you are saving the planet, this could do the trick for you.

*I also tried (for the last time) to try Brad's Pizza on Curry Ford. After many wild goose chases caused by the idiot Google, I tracked him down to a place called Collaborative Kitchen. He wasn't in. Of course. But, it wouldn't have mattered anyway. They force you to order on line through their app. I refuse to use apps unless they can be proven to be innocuous. As in, they don't install tracking software. And they all do. And it just seems like a bad business model. If you get walk-ins, why chase them away? It can't cost any more to type in the order to your POS. And it also seems like these snotty, bigoted little shits rely on deliver companies for most of their sales. That's another example of profit erosion. I'm starting to understand that whole "stupid is as stupid does" expression. I also saw a cool named place almost open on 50 called Mongolorian and Cucina has opened DT. So Dough on Michigan is also supposed to be open. I'll have one more post with some travel notes in a few days.

Grub Crawl - Windermere and Millenia: Dim Dim Sum and Pho 813 (Closed)

I tried these places last night. The first is at the intersection of Conroy and Apopka Vineland. You get off 1-4 by the Mall at Millenia and cross Kirkman and go all the way to Olympia High School. The corner with Hawkers. Far left if coming that way. The second is near the Target on Conroy just off I-4.

Dim Dim Sum - Kind of well named. Not the brightest of dim sum stars. I had shrimp dumplings, chao zhou fun guo dumplings and xiao long bao (that they don't call dumplings but are). They only served three per order. Shrinkflation seems to be how they are reacting to the current economic environment. Shanghai Lane did it to me too last month. The shrimp were good. Whole pieces. No stink or off flavors. They didn't steam them long enough. The exterior was pasty and fell off. A little better with the chao. They were ground and whole pork with chives and peanuts. Some gristly bits. Soft nuts. Maybe there were four to this order? Bigger, longer sized. The soup in the soup dumplings wasn't great. Still not sure why they call them bao. Internet says bao is a steamed bread roll. As I believed. All these plates cost $6.50. Tea was $3.50. All are too costly if you ask me. The menu is small. 39 things. The place has a patio and windows up front. Open kitchen in rear. A few tables. Waterfall on far left. Modern. Red brick walls. Wood trim. Slate floors. Two servers. It was empty. Maybe because a Hawkers outpost is very close. Not worth the effort (even with the dearth of dim sum options). Open for 6 months. Don't see them surviving. 

Pho 813 - Open 2 months. Grabbed a tofu banh mi to go for $9. Never had one before. Never will again. Would have been better without the tofu. Just veg. Roll was unforgivable. Supermarket shit that was old and probably wetted down and nuked. This is the basic component of the dish. If this is how the treat this, I don't trust them to do anything well or trust their standards. It was to come with pate too. Didn't discern any. 813 is Tampa area code. Place is modern. Bar on left rear. dining area on right. Big mural there. White walls. Blues. Blacks. Same old menu. Had shrimp on sugar cane though. 

*I also "tried" a new chain place on 434 in Longwood called So Fresh. Such A Ripoff would be more accurate. Refused to pony up the $8 (to start - basically cheese) plus an extra $4+ for ANY protein. Many other things were extra too. My soda (sucked) cost $3. Nothing looked fresh. The cookies and brownies were even packaged from another company. Their "quesadilla" had mozzarella and two other even less Mexican cheeses in it.  Man I hate these fast casual, veganish ripoff joints. Can anybody stop the madness? THEY WILL NOT MAKE YOU SKINNY....ERR HEALTHY. THEY WILL TAKE YOUR MONEY. Open for a month.

Grub Crawl - Florida Mall: Cantina Catrina, Steak Up and Gotcha Smokehouse BBQ *FL Travel Notes

I tried these places on Tuesday at lunch.

Cantina Catrina - Open for less than a month. Original in Miami. One of these in-authentic Mexican Applebee's that have been proliferating. I had barbacoa tacos because they were "street" and the line at Chipotle was crazy the day before and most things cost more than these. They cost $16 for 5. But, it turned out it was Taco Tuesday and I got them for half off. They were ok. The beef was bland. I wouldn't be shocked if it comes in a bag. The tortillas were a bit raw. The radish and avocado were fresh. Small menu. The decor is very dark (in color and I guess content). They decorate the place in "Day of the Dead" stuff. And pictures and posters of old Mexican movies and movie stars. Three areas. A bar area with patio (view of parking lot). Two areas with views of mall. Service was good. Maybe....maybe go for Taco Tuesday or drinks. At entrance to food court.

Steak Up - Next door to Catrina. Brazilian Fast Casual. Not sure how long they have been there. I tried to order a baked potato with chicken. They rang it up for a buck more than listed and then added a three dollar convenience fee. I asked for a refund. It rubbed me the wrong way. The convenience fee should be discounted if anything if you order to go. Not the other way around.

Gotcha Smokehouse BBQ - They were a little more inside the food court. I think the sign said there have been there since 2007. The items and severs (and eventually the taste) made it seem more Asian/Latin bbq than cracker. I got the chicken bowl (cheapest) for $9. It was some grilled chicken in a sauce that was a bit teryaki tasting. Good. I tried roasted potatoes as the side. Ok. A few undercooked. Small selection. Not more allure.

*Travel Notes - Florida Gulf Coast and Keys: I was going to stop in Lakeland but it was so early in the day to stop then. Did scope out Swan Brewing in DT. It wasn't open yet. Looked up hotels on St Pete Beach. Too expensive ($200+ for garbage). So, I found one in Kenwood (in between St Pete and St Pete Beach). Days Inn at $136. Got an awful gyro to go at Skidder's (AAA magazine) before I left. Ate good Panang mole curry with chicken at Nitally's Thai Mex (Food Paradise) in St Pete the next day. Drove south a bit to Munch's (3D) and grabbed the Cuban special with fries to go. Never been to that part of the city. Slept in Osprey at Casey Key Resort for $150. Lots of fees. Drove along Casey Key. Nice. Stephen King has places there. Looked in on Nokomis Beach. This area is just as good as Sarasota. Less expensive and built up. Ate breakfast (eggs benedict) at the hotel restaurant - Chef Rolf's. Drove south to Matlacha and had a cheeseburger at Bert's. Slept in North Fort Myers and the scary Riverview Inn for $116. Took a tour (Tropic Star) from Bookeelia on Pine Island to Cabbage Key and Cayo Costa SP for $57. All day tour. $42 for just Cayo Costa. Ate shrimp salad at Cabbage Key Inn. They do a dollar bill thing on the ceiling. May have been one of the inspirations for Cheeseburger in Paradise. Ate dinner and had beer in Naples at Bone Hook Brewery. Bad quesadilla and chicken chili. Slept down the street at Fairways Inn for $140. Drove by Baker museum, philharmonic and zoo. Baker wanted vax proof. I told them follow the science. I even pointed the way. Didn't go in to other places either. Ate pimento cheese and chicken sandwich with fries at Lake Park Diner. It's a modern diner. Cute. Ate very good al pastor and chicken tinga tacos at Turco Tacos. Drove on to Clyde Butcher's Photography Studio (at 52388 Tamiami Trail). Was going to buy a photo. But, they were around $7k for the ones displayed. $40 just for a poster! Onto Miccouskee Casino Resort for $235. I screwed myself waiting for prices to drop here or around the Keys. They didn't. Went the other way. I chose them because I've always wanted to see what's up. They gave me the top (executive) floor. Drove down to Key Largo. Had a good tuna melt and fries at Buzzard's Roost. On a canal. Had chilled shrimp and mango tacos at Chef Rolf''s Tuna's in Islamorada. Had seared yellowtail at Snapper's in Key Largo. Good water setting. Grabbed bad bacalao croquettas and worse tamal at Fernando the Bull in Key Largo. They started in Naples. Slept in Florida City at Fairway Inn for $94. Had to make up for the overspends somehow. Grabbed a ham and egg and cheese sandwich and Frito Burger (potato sticks and Med spiced) at Cuban Guys in Palmetto Bay on US 1 on the way home. Rental car (Nissan Rogue) cost $243 with Budget. Spent about $120 in gas. Only had bad weather on one day (Thursday). Good trip. No traffic problems. Even drafted my fantasy team during it. I used some credits on two of the hotels, so, they weren't as expensive as I listed.

Root Canal Tutorial

Although this will still probably be long, I will try and give an abridged version of what I want to impart and focus on the pricing. That is is the hardest to pin down. I needed a root canal (or extraction and replacement) because of crack in the tooth that allowed bacteria to flow through to the rootsin to my interior/blood stream. I should add that I have no insurance and all the prices quoted will be at their "reduced" no insurance rate. Also, almost every visit was like a Nascar pit stop. The crack was likely years in the making.

Symptoms: I first felt a little sinus pressure. Then a few days later some chills with slight pain around the cheek and jaw. Then pain in the teeth area while eating. aspirin helped. Then swelling around the lower jaw. Came and went. Then lymph node (below jaw at neck) swelling. Then "pimples" on the gums around the tooth. Then they burst and gray sludge oozed out. At that point (I was away when this happened) I was home and had to decide between dentist and doctor. I chose dentist. Total time was under two weeks.

Evaluation 1: I went to the last dentist I had a cleaning with (Dentists of Sanford). He was gone. A new guy (Jimmy Huynh) was in his place. They let me have the new patient rate of $59. He didn't mention a crack. Kind of acknowledged the abcess on the xray after I suggested it (did some internet research before). Suggested a $1200+ cleaning and gave me a prescription for Amoxycillin and suggested I may want to see an Endodontist. At least that helped. Free at Publix. That was a bad diagnosis.

Evaluation 2: Approx two weeks later (it was the holidays), I called on Alexsandra Shaykova at Baytree Family Dentists based on a flyer I had collected and the $1 Emergency Rate she offered. Plus she claimed to be able to most dental work and had a slot. She diagnosed a crack and suggested yanking the tooth and replacing it for $5137 in six steps over six months. That floored me.

Evaluation 3: The next day I tried Jessica Du at Smile Design Dentistry. Her teaser rate was $29. She confirmed the crack and said it was beyond her ability (although the flyer claimed she could do this type of work) and I should see an endodontist for a CT scan to be sure that it should be yanked. She recommended one. Her prices (spoiler alert - I come back here) went from $1421 to $1204 to $1087 for a crown. Not sure why. I guess keep asking.

Evaluation 4: I went to Mark Goldberg of Mid Florida Endodontics (another two weeks because of holiday #2) for the scan. It cost $250 ($150 eval and $100 scan). He said crack was too close to gum line and he wouldn't do a root canal. Yank it. Would not recommend anybody. Said not time sensitive if it didn't hurt. It didn't.

Evaluation 5: Did some eval of endodontists and periodontists. Most wouldn't do the whole job or didn't have appts for two months. Crazy. Found one who would and had openings. Kevin Bonn. I paid him $82 and he said I should he thought it could be saved. Sent me too a colleague that day. I should add that he wanted to take a new ct scan for $400ish. Extraction part of replacement would have been $407. Crown $1808. It was hard to pin them down on pricing. That and his refusal to do the crown until I did weeks of some jaw alignment therapy (while not telling me until I stopped by for another issue) made me move on. They also quoted me these prices: CT $406, Extraction $150-$350, Graft $475. Wouldn't quote implant. Total for replaced tooth $3 to $5k.

Evaluation 6: Travis Cassie at Lake Mary Endodontics said he could save it. Would have charged $250 for CT unless I brought my own (get a copy when you get one done). His initial eval was $185. He did the root canal two weeks later (because we were trying to line up schedules with Bonn) for $1330. It didn't hurt much. They put in a soft cap. You need to replace it within a month. Would have been $695 if aborted.

Evaluation 7: Not really an eval. Went back to Jessica Du. Another week or so. See drilled out what Cassie filled in (don't ask me why) and ground some things down and made a mold. Two week later she put the crown from the lab on. Once again that part was $160 for the crown build up and $927 for the crown.

Synopsis: This has been a nightmare. My teeth have shifted. My bite is off. It cost so much more than I expected. And I got off light. It took forever. And I didn't just accept the first offers/advice. Replacing seemed like a nightmare and I didn't want some idiot drilling into my jaw bone. The tooth still may not last. No one in my social circle knew anything about this or could make any good recommendations. That's why I'm posting this. I never have dental issues. Yet, this can happen to any of us. And it sucks.

*Here is an addendum that of docs for didn't make the final cut. I tried to evaluate colleges and work experience. It's hard to find Ivy league level training around here. Just tried to get someone NOT from a school like Nova:

D Whitman of Orlando Oral & Facial Surgery - Wouldn't do fake tooth part if replaced.

Ed Kennedy of Kennedy Periodontics - Had no appts  for months. A consult would have been $150, CT $350, Extraction $325, Graft $475, Blood something $175, Implant $2275 plus $100.

Tim Tiralosi - No appts for too long. $5500 for tooth replacement.

Oreth - $150 exam, $375 extraction, $1000 PTF membrane graft, $2600 implant, $1500 crown.

Grub Crawl - Downtown and Lee Rd: Dolce (Closed), The Monroe and Cupid's Hot Dogs (Moved to Longwood) *OR/WA Travel Notes

I went to the first spot over a week ago at lunch. It is past the Publix on East Central where the buildings end (nearer to TP). Across from Eola Wine Company. The second I went to yesterday at lunch. It is in the Julian in that Technology Center where the Orena used to be. It was the first time I drove through there. It's cool. The last in on Lee Rd near Edgewater. It took over some Mexican spot. I went there after lunch yesterday.

Dolce - Open for three months. It ostensibly has a 20's theme. In reality it is just an ordinary place with a F. Scott Fitzgerald quote (a banal one) and three pictures (of what appears to be a Russian whore) in 20's garb. They may have played 20's music. The yammering of the two Hispanic cooks overwhelmed my memory of the event. I settled on a Chef Salad ($15) more because my body must have wanted vitamins. Even the sparse ones this provided. The menu was a bit basic. Some sandwiches, breakfast items, bowls, salads and a fair sized dessert menu (crafted by some lady on Cupcake Wars that I think they said had a place in WP called Jilly's). The salad was ok. Chicken in it. I would have the liked the chicken not to have been seasoned. Too little dressing. They also only gave me a tiny glass (of un-refilled) soda. The dessert menu had fun things like confetti cake and cheesecake in a waffle cone. That (and maybe breakfast) are probably the draws. They don't even offer martinis. Just wine. The owner ran the Sausage Shack in WP. That was good. The interior is white with some wood under the bar. Old and lazy ID. AC was on way too high. Small patio in front. About four tables (all girls) seated at lunch. Service was slow. The kitchen's fault. One server. 

The Monroe - They seem to be going for some kind of bluesy, Southern vibe. Not sure if Orlando (and they seem to be hinting at that with the decorations) accurately represents that. Oh well, it looks cute and they recreate (or manufacture) locally flavored dishes. I had the St John's River Catfish Sandwich with cucumber salad (or potato wedges) for $14. I was interested in the salmon (they may even have tried to sell this as local). But, not at $26. The fish was fishy. Needed to have been soaked in buttermilk or whatever they usually do. The fry was perfect. The bun was one of the best I've ever had. A glossy, soft, buttery sesame seed bum. Chopped lettuce in mayo and tomatoes were fresh too. Cucumbers had a bland dressing. Too much and maybe cut too thick or too thin. The perfectly wrong size. All in all, better conceptualization than execution. Open for around six months? The guy/group behind Seito Sushi and Osprey in Baldwin Park. Nice decor. Shabby chic. Long front room on the left. Mostly window faced. Kitchen behind in. They have low walls to divide up the space. Bar and lounge area inside a little. Patio behind that. Once again, there were lots of Blues memorabilia and junk (purposeful) scattered around. Some games. I remember grays. Pretty full. People with jobs. The menu had fried chicken, steak frites, steak, biscuits, Philly CS, hamburger, three salads, etc. The entrees were around mid-twenties. The sandwich type things were mid-teens. The lunch menu was only a buck or two cheaper than the dinner. More things (but not a ton) at dinner. I am curious about the pickled shrimp and the jerk seasoned chicken hearts and the liver pate. Not sure why it is called Monroe. We have a Lake Monroe. Don't know it's origin either. I wish I could recommend this or put it on the Favorite's list. But, it has three strikes. 1 - Parking is metered here and to further infuriate me you can only pay with a tracking infested app. I did find free parking a few blocks away. 2 - An iced tea (unfilled) was $4. 3. The execution missteps. Check their hours. I think they close on Sunday and Monday. 

Cupid's Hot Dogs - I maligned them and alas they open as if waiting for my cue. They claim to be a small (5) chain from California. No one I've questioned from there (including myself) has heard of them. I aked the owner. She said San Fernando Valley. A person I told said she looked them up and it said Simi Valley. Oh well. I had a chili dog for $5. They are running a special with fries and soda only $1 more. The dog was ok. Long. Pork? Tasted like a Dodger Dog. Salty. Unseasoned. A bit of a snap. Semi sweet bun. Nothing special. Same with chili. Fries were like In & Out's. Not a compliment from me. They sell about ten things. Has adequate parking. A gimmick play.

*Travel Notes - Oregon and Washington: I wouldn't have overloaded this post if I had another food adventure coming up soon. Plane fare to Portland was $283. Rental car was $463/wk. I spent the first night near the airport at Nordic Inn for $106. Drove on 26 to Government Camp and Timberline Lodge. Hotel from The Shining. On to Bend via 97. Ate lunch at Walt Reilly's. Ate dinner at Lucy's Taco Shop. Good Mex. Slept at Campfire Hotel for $100. Did recon and bought lift ticket ($119 wd - was supposed to be $89 according to internet) to Mt Bachelor and rented skis at Powder House for $45 ($64 at mountain). Skied the next day. Good. Drank beer (don't judge when you read on - just samples sizes) at Cascade Lakes Brewing, Deschutes Brewery, Immersion Brewing, Crux Fermentation Project and Boss Rambler Beer Project. Ate great tacos and tlacoyo (fried masa cakes filled with cheese) at El Sancho Taco Shop. Slept at Days Inn for $74. Drove nw on 26 to John Day Fossil Beds NM. Nice mountain-y drive. Drove on to Day and own 395 to Burns. Slept there at America's Best Value Inn (not bad for them) for $109. Back to Bend via 20. Flatter drive. On nw to Sisters. Ate and drank at Three Creeks Brewery. Slept at Sisters Inn for $125. Everything here was around 25% too much. Further on to Corvallis. Visited OSU. Ate satay and chicken in tumeric cream sauce with noodles at Magenta. Drank at Block 15, Sky High Brewing and Crowbar. Had pizza at American Dream Pizza. Slept at Hotel Corvallis for $106. Drove to Salem on 5. Saw the capitol. On to the coast via 22w. Ate in Tillamook at Blue Heron French Cheese Co. Also bought cheese and cider. Visited Tillamook Cheese Co. Up 101 to Astoria. Visited Lewis and Clark NP. Over bridge to Long Beach Washington. Claims to be longest beach in world. Ate chowder at Chowder Stop. Slept at Coastal Inn for $93. Went up to a town called Oysterville. Nothing there. Back to LB. Ate fried cod at Captain Bob's Chowder. Drove back to Astoria. Found the house in The Goonies on 38th St. Drove back to Portland via 30. I missed some location on 101 for Goonies and Point Break. Better trip than I expected. Gas was around $4.50. Airport was a breeze. Two people ahead at TSA when leaving. Car rental easy too. Good conditioned vehicles. Mine had only 400 miles. Not proof reading this. Marionberries are a thing.

Grub Crawl - Winter Park and Altamonte Springs: Tous les Jours (Closed), La Rima, Kumo and Quickly Bistro

I was going to subject you to a root canal tutorial, but, I'll save that for another day because it probably won't be of any interest to anyone anyway. I tried these places tonight. The haphazard way they came about has alot to do with plan a and b going awry. And concerns about rush hour traffic. Ava is only open from Wednesday and Cupid's Hot dogs refuses to open. The first two are on Fairbanks in WP. The second two are in a strip mall with a supermarket near the Maitland overpass on 434.

Tous les Jours - Bakery. Open for three months. Was something like Bread something before. Owner changed franchises to this. He's Asian. They have an Asian feel (kim chi pastry). I grabbed a chestnut pastry for $4 because it looked cool and I've never had one. It was good. Brioche like in some areas. Croissant like in others. Chestnuts were orange-y and soft and sweet. They decorate the top with dough pieces that look like soft pretzel nuggets. Attractive. They sell other handhelds (sweet and savory) and cakes and drinks. Small hallway on the left to eat in. You grab a tray and tongs and go to work. Visible pricing would be nice. Just off the North Orange (17-92) and Fairbanks intersection.

La Rima - Another pointless drinks spot (actually saw another similar one called Kos down the block). Open for a year. By Tin & Taco on the block that starts at Rollins. Had a cold Chrysanthemum. It tasted like black pepper. Saw flecks of black in the cup. Either sabotaged or that's what it should taste like. I mean I was a maskless adult man invading a safe space. The flake of snow would have been within her rights to teach me a lesson. It robbed me of $5.

Kumo Asian - Sushi rolls, ramen, apps and bentos. Had no salmon for the bento so I overpaid for two rolls (s and t). Better than I was expecting, but still around supermarket quality. And I yell at them for charging $8. These cost $11. Rice was ok. Nori wapped. Cigar shaped. Big waste of space entrance area. Can't remember if there was an eat in space beyond. Order at the counter. No frills. Open for three years.

Quickly Bistro - The bag had many countries and a web site listed on it. It may be a chain. Pan Asian. Pad Thai, Pho, bao, fried rice, bento, etc. Something called fried Pho. And drinks. Gotta have drinks or women would just waste their (?) money on shoes and handbags and botox and makeup and nails and jewelry and perfume and clothes and hair and plastic surgery and yoga and chocolate. I was talked into volcano (tempura shrimp, fake crab and mayo) bao. 3 for $9. Pre-fried, mostly shrimpless tempura. Tough. A let down in three acts. Black wall with images of famous landmarks. Open for five years. Adding "neutral Vega" to the mix soon. Ended up being worse than Kumo. 

*I saw that a Ceviche (behind 7-11 on Fairbanks near Rollins) had closed. Being taken over by a Korean spot. And I told you about Kos (closed Monday). Another drink place near the lot behind Ava was also closed today.  I think I'll try downtown tomorrow. Although, I may have alienated half my audience yet again. It's jokes ladies. Just jokes. We kid because we care.

Grub Crawl - Winter Garden: Morthan Cheese, Press'd, AntiquiTeas, NY Bagel (Cosed) and Rosallie *GA/TN/AL Travel Notes

I tried these places on Wednesday at lunch. The first three are in the marketplace. The last two are on Plant Street. I have given you almost all of them. I haven't done a popcorn place in the market. Whole Enchilada and Matthew's remain on Plant. The chocolatier (Torres?) is open again in the market.

Morthan Cheese - I grabbed a roast beef and raclette sandwich to go for $14. It was good. Cheese is their deal. The raclette was good. It's a Swiss staple. Not sure where they get theirs. The roast beef was probably Boar's Head. Four slices. Bun was ok.  Some arugula. Open for four years. They sell around a dozen things. The woman there was a bit cranky.

Press'd - My nightmare. A vegan stall that thinks it is saving the planet by not printing receipts. Just burning coal to charge the move to digital though. You may want to explore where those electric car batteries are being recycled too. Spoiler alert. It's a land fill. Or how we are becoming more of China's (raw earth metal barons) bitch as we drop carbons. But I digress. I grabbed the cheapest thing. A disgusting, rubber like "hot dog". In came in a pretzel bum. $5. Air fried/re-heated. They mostly have drinks. $10 smoothies for example Pre-Bidenflation. Some "puddings". Some "power balls". I think they said they were an original tenant.

AntiquiTeas - Love the name. Just a Harry Potter Magic Shop like stall of teas. I had a cold Ceylon Star for $3.50. It was good. many options. Another tenant from day one. Nice owner operator. Seemed to care. 

NY Bagel - Open for two years. I grabbed a bagel with cc for $3. Good bagel. CC also. They sell sandwiches and pizza and other baked things. Long, narrow lay out.

Rosallie - Across the street. Open for four years. A French sweets and drinks shop that sells some meals. I grabbed an apple turnover to go for $4.60. It was good. The sweets look posh. They offer brunch all day and croissant flatbreads and sandwiches and salads. A little expensive at around $15. Place has charm though. 

*Travel Notes - GA/TN/AL: I slept the first night in Ellijay GA at the Stratford Inn for $115 (rack rate). I drove east about twenty miles to the start of the Appalachian Trail. I came back and drove north to Sweetwater TN. I went to the Lost Sea for $26. It's America's Largest Underground Lake in a cavern. I drove north and west to Lebanon TN. Stayed at the Cedar Valley Inn for $94 (rack rate). I drove into Nashville and ate fried chicken at Hattie B's (on B, B and Que) . Pretty good. Bacon cheddar grits were better. Grabbed a burger to go at Gabby's Burger. On the same show. It was bad. Meatloaf like. Those were on the southern side of Nashville. It looked hip. A reclaimed industrial area with breweries, etc. A mile or so south, there seemed to be a rich area with prep schools, etc. I drove south to Huntsville AL. I saw it on Samantha Brown's Places to Love. They birthed the space program there. Basically responsible for everything until after the moon landing. Was an arms manufacturing point before that. Werner von Braun lived here. Space Camp is here. Saturn V rocket. Who knew? I took the US Space and Rocket Center Tour for $30. I stayed at the Comfort Inn for $115. Even more expensive in dt. I ate chicken fried steak with mac and cheese and mashed potatoes and corn bread at G's Country Kitchen (on the show too). DT was cute. Cute city overall. On the way out, I stopped at Burritt on the Mountain (also on the show). It's an an old timey village thing. Good view of city. Didn't pay the $8. Drove se past some lakes. Made it to Tifton GA. stayed at a La Quinta for $115 (rack rate). Stopped on 75 at Magnolia Plantation. It's a shitty tourist trap with billboards on 75.. Just crap and jams, etc. I learned that "butters" are just jams with caramel. They had many. Some funny named mixes like Frog (Fig, Raspberry, Orange, Ginger). I tried to go to Spurrier's in Gainesville. Only opens at 4pm. I rained alot. Made exploring more difficult. Lost Sea was overrated. Huntsville was worth it. 

Grub Crawl - Winter Park: Asia Kitchen, Jam Hot Chicken and The Imperial

I tried the places last Friday at lunch and dinner. The first is in a strip mall on Lake Howell Rd (one block west of 436). The second is in Hannibal Square. The third is at S. Knowles off Park Ave.

Asia Kitchen - They said they replaced (and updated) a take out spot that had been there for twenty years. Don't remember it. Around three months ago. This isn't much of an improvement. I hope. They just made it look slightly modern. The menu still seems like take out. I was expecting "sit down" quality. The interior is also not conducive to eating in (three tables). I had the sisig pork for $13. I have had this three times since I tried it properly done in the Phillipines. Each time it gets worse. It's supposed to be parts of the head. I've had pork belly, ground pork and now the diced pork they probably use in the pork fried rice. It was tough. Alot of it. That made it hurt more. Not much flavor. Maybe fish and soy sauce and vinegar. Lots of diced onion. Came with rice. They sell bao, rangoon, summer roll, dumplings and soups as apps. General Tso, drunken chicken, lo mein, etc as mains. Bentos. Bobas and smoothies. They have a robot delivery machine for kicks. Waste of money if you ask me. The owner and her family were taking up one of the three available tables. It just is underwhelming. Meals took a while to prepare too. Open 11-9. No Sn. Pass.

Jam Hot Chicken - They sell four takes on hot fried chicken breast (and some odds and ends). A cold one in a wrap. One on bread. One in a bun. One other. In a little shack/kiosk. Open since December. This was the fourth time I tried the, First time - not open yet. Second time - not open on Monday or Tuesday. Third time - forty minute wait. Open 11-8. I had the most expensive sandwich on a bun for $14. It was ok. I asked for mild. It was hot. Slaw was spongy. Chicken too. Bun was glossy. Pickles ok. Ok crust. Fell off a little too easily. Big bird. It is what it is.

The Imperial - I've been to the other two. This one seems a bit more structured for food. I shared shrimp and avocado ceviche ($17) and a baked brie platter ($12). The first was better and fresher. Brie ws bland and bread was worse. Also had fruit. The had a singer singing. Pretty packed. it has been open for over a year. Same decor of furniture as the other places. Service was good. Wine by the glass was $10+. 

*I'll have some travel notes later in the week. Site is acting buggy again. That's why this is so short.

North Italia, Sand Lake Rd *FL Travel Notes

This website has been so buggy lately that I'm going to write this one up even though I just posted something (I actually wrote that a week ago but it wouldn't upload before I left). I tried this franchise (twenty five or so locations) Italian play last Thursday at lunch. It is in a spot in the first strip mall off I-4 where Ocean Prime and American Social are. It was a J Alexanders. Open for three months. It's ok. It looks nice. An L shaped layout. High ceilings. Bar on the left with a semi-enclosed bar area. A private room. Kitchen in the rear. White walled. Blacks. Grays. Light woods and a modern living room (plants, etc) feel. My section alone sat 80. Probably the same in the other section. Maybe forty at the bar. About twenty percent full. Free, fresh bread. I had the Chicken Parmesan Sandwich for $15. Didn't love the value on the menu. They serve it on a round ciabatta. Smallish. The chicken was dry and very thin. It was topped with prosciutto and a spicy aioli. Maybe some cheese? That would make sense. It came with fries. They shredded some fresh cheese over them. Correctly fried. The rest of the menu was predictable. Pizza. Salads. Pasta. Etc. I think they wrote that spaghetti bolognese was a house specialty. Service was slow. When I walked out, I looked into the kitchen. Seemed like one impresario and a few minions. My waiter was good. He comped me what would be an overpriced ice tea ($4). Traffic is ridiculous there.

*Travel Notes - Florida: I drove to Tampa. Stayed at the shitty Quality Inn on 41 near the Fair Grounds for $120. I drove south on 41 to the Big Bend Power Plant to see manatees. Not a one. Then a few miles south to Apollo Beach. Not much beach. Was going to head south, but, prices were ridiculous. $200 to $400 all the way south. For crap. The same on the east coast. I drove to S Dale Mabry Blvd to BJ's Alabama BBQ. Saw it on some show. It was ok. Drove on 275 and then west where it merges with 75 on 54 and then north on 41 to 98. Stayed at a better Quality Inn in Chiefland for $109. It turns out Manatee Springs SP was there. It cost $4 for a single driver. No manatees, but, nice springs and walk to Suwanee River. Ate at Bar BQ Bill's. Damn good chicken. Drove north the next day to Fanning. Fanning Springs SP ($6) and a fort there. Not as nice a spring. No manatees. Ate a decent shrimp wrap at Chomper's Drive Thru Diner. Good marketing concept. Drove to Apalachicola. Stayed at the Apalachicola Bay Inn for $132. Had beers at Oyster City Brewing Co. Ate a very good platter of grouper, shrimp and oysters at Apalachicola Seafood Grill. The next morning I had breakfast at the Franklin Cafe at the Gibson Inn. Kept going west on 98. Drove through Panama City and Rosemary Beach. Had delicious pumpkin ice cream in a glazed donut just west of PC at Thomas'. Slept at a dump of a BW in Destin for $116. Had a chocolate glazed donut and humongous brownie at the Donut Hole at breakfast. Only cost like $3. Had Greek shrimp salad at Destin Ice Seafood Market. They said that they supply every restaurant in town. Drove to Navarre Beach. Stayed at the Days Inn for $99. Drove to Pensacola. Stayed at the Sole Inn again. $130. Ate a fairly lame fried oyster basket with fried green tomatoes and gouda grits at The Fish House at lunch. Had beers at Big Top Brewing Company and 5 Barrel Brewery. Had a great dinner at Iron. Joyce Farm Airline Chicken in a marsala demi with creamy parsnip risotto (it worked) and lion's mane mushrooms (never heard of them) and bruleed cipollini onions. Drove to Fernandina Beach on 10. Stayed at the Surf Beach Motel for $112. Ate a lousy beef and duck meatloaf at Le Clos. It sounded interesting. Grabbed a cheddar cheese covered roll at Bailey's on Ash and an ok breakfast empanada at Hola this morning. Drove down 95 to Crescent Beach. Went to Fort Matanzas NP. Ferry to fort only had room at 2:30pm. Went to the beach instead. Drove down A1A. Ate an ok crab cake benedict at Oceanside at Flagler Beach. I had seen it on the news. Because of erosion from a hurricane and covid.

Upgrading A Cellular Phone Tutorial

This is based on an AT&T phone and service, but, it may apply universally. I haven't wanted to switch phones. I hate the hassle (some times it is a bitch to cancel the original service) and your data never transfers correctly. The last time I did, I switched from another carrier and the people at the AT&T store helped me all the way through buying an older/cheaper model and setting it up. This time, they would not help at all and didn't have any phones for sale. Just for lease. Costly ones. However, my battery barely stayed charged and I had purchased three replacement from Amazon and they all were either dead on arrival or just as bad. I then went to Wal-mart and some kid tried to sell me a new contract too. Best Buy checked my phone number and said my phone plan wasn't transferable to a new phone (unlocked or not). It turned out that they all were liars or wrong and it was fairly simple.

I went back one last time (with some info from the internet) to the AT&T store and I squeezed it from one guy that I could indeed buy a phone (AT&T sponsored) elsewhere and switch the Sim cards. He thought I'd have to update my account online though. I kind of knew that. The internet said I'd have to log into my cell account (I never set it up) and change an IME number. I was hoping I wouldn't have to do that. However, I found the info (in my docs) and created an account to see what I could do online that I couldn't at the store. Similar situation. They had phones for sale, but, you had to switch to a more expensive plan. It was unclear if you could buy the phone alone. I went back to Walmart (cheaper than Target with same two phones) to buy a phone from them and met a shopper that worked for AT&T. She said I could just switch the Sim card and that would be all I had to do. I looked up some how to videos on the internet and it seemed easy. I went back to Walmart and bought a pretty good phone for $50. 

I slipped the Sim card (a little paper looking square resembling a smaller additional memory card) out of the old phone and into the new one. I turned it on and it found the network. That is the key thing. If it finds the network, you are golden. It needed to update the software over wifi. But, that's all I had to do. I was billed as usual and everything works. I test texted and called. Certain things on the phone had changed and it is too big, but, it was fairly painless. So don't fall for their up sell bs. 

I should also mention that I tried a few other AT&T stores and they all had few workers whom were busy with others and/or others were also waiting to talk to them ahead of me. Plus I was going to use them for home wifi, but, they make you sign up for a plan BEFORE they will send someone to see if your infrastucture supports their system or you have to buy their equipment (online) and sign up for the plan and self install BEFORE you know the same. I'm sure it's real easy to untangle that mess if it doesn't work out.

Grub Crawl - Downtown: Neon Beach (Closed), Corner Pizza Bar, Robinson Coffee Room, Deeply Coffee Company and Neighborhood Eatery *SC/NC Travel Notes

I tried the places last Friday at lunch. The first is near Motorworks Brewing on Orange. The second is on Magnolia and Church. The third is on Pine and Magnolia next to Shots. The fourth is in that high rise at Magnolia and Palmetto nearer to the lake. The fifth is down the street from that (nearer to the Courthouse) on Magnolia. I want to thank Bluddy Diarrhea (or is it the fat lady?) for putting in all those pay meters that make downtown so unwelcoming. It really helps with the "congestion". Hope it pays for his Pro-Active. And I want to thank you all for proving to me, once and for all, that "word of mouth" truly is not an effective marketing strategy. Even if the content/product/service is free. I saw that Magnolia on Magnolia had shut down and Cucina looked like they didn't get scared off and is almost open.

Neon Beach - The brain child of the Tin & Taco people. A Miami themed place. It looks more like a bar. But, they have some food. Not sure what Miami based cuisine means to most people. I'm guessing Carib fusion. They do have a Cuban quesadilla. I was unimpressed by the selection or pricing. I settled on a Cobb salad after a week of questionable choices. Not that that is a healthy option anyway. It was ok. It cost $10. Mostly fresh stuff. Alot of blue cheese crumbles. BTW did you know that when you buy shredded cheese in a package it is teeming with cellulose? That's saw dust. Block cheese has a greater chance of being "real". The menu had snooze inducers like burgers and such. They said they were changing it soon. The place is kind of Miami. High ceilings. Bar in the middle. White orbs made of twigs. Pine branches. Kind of palmy murals. Open for a year.

The Corner Pizza Bar - It is the latest in this space that I think had been called the Magnolia Marketplace. I've been here when they tried to have different stalls. A place called 801 Coal Oven Pizza or something. Frankenfurters too? Now it is just non-Italian Italian and a bar. Basically the same thing it has always been. Same pizza oven even. I just had a slice to go when I realized this and that it wasn't craft pizza. Was just going for a pie anyway. Over priced. It (alone) cost $3. A big NY style slice. Ok. I say it is non-Italian because they offer things like pickle fries, Mexican pizza and jalapeno poppers. In addition to such Italian favorites as wings, strips and fries. The Italian items they do have run range from subs to pasta. Open for six months. I think they said they had 80 beers. Probably not a single Italian one. I think Italian. I think beer anyway! Every price ends in a seven?

Robinson Coffee Room - I just bumped into them. It's in a location that was Knife something and Red Mug something and Breakfast Club. Open for two years! It's cool. Very modern. Youngster hang. Insipid breast milk (I mean coffee and tea) pacifiers. Plus a small pastry counter and a breakfast menu of around ten items at around $10. Think avocado toast. Open seven days for breakfast through dinner. Big space. Patio. Oh, I tried a chocolate twist that I doubt they make. It cost $5. Bland. It may actually be closer to Livingston than Magnolia. Hence the name.

Deeply Coffee Company - Another breast milk sippy cup place for adult children. Open since 2015. I had a coffee cola for $5. Fine. Place is spartan. Seems like a work space for the unemployed or adult children whom can't let go of the college experience/atmosphere. They sell wine too. By the bottle. Like a store. 

The Neighborhood Eatery - Turns out I tried the same exact thing here on December 30th 2015 (if you want to read that post). Good to see they had staying power. I had the Koagie for $9. I think it cost $8 last time. Korean cheese steak/hoagie. Good. Sweet. Glossy bun. Small. Like half a hoagie. I'll take this opportunity to reprimand the every growing number of sandwich places that are pulling this (half sandwich) stunt. 

*Travel Notes - SC/NC: I ate a Cribb burger with smoky potato salad at Cribb's Kitchen in Spartanburg SC. Slept at Hampton Inn for $86. Grabbed terrible smoked chicken salad at Daddy Joe's Beach House Grill in Gaffney SC. Ok espresso and chocolate frosted and chocolate frosted with coconut at Local Lion in Boone NC. Had sloppy ground beef pot pie at Wild Craft Eatery. Slept two nights at really good Comfort Inn for $85 a night. Skied at Beech Mountain for $46 and $34 for ski package (there). Skied the next day at Sugar Mountain for $49 and $28 for skis package (there). There were cheaper rental places around both resorts. There was a little walk from the lots, so, I just ponied up to save walking in ski boots (with skis). Both resorts are around fifteen miles from Boone. While there (Boone area) I went to a place (highest peak) called Grandfather Mountain. There was a cool bridge on it. Because they were gay about Covid rules and it cost over $20, I didn't go in. Even though they wanted me bad. Boone is home to Appalachian State University. I drove around there. I also bought a bottle (untasted) of wine at Grandfather Vineyard. I also went to Appalachian Ski Resort. It wasn't worth it. Just for novices. Internet said lift tix were $44 (w) and rentals were $26 (w). Plus you had to pay for parking and they wanted a reservation in advance. I should mention that the prices at the other places were for during the week. Full day. On the way home, I passed by a place called Blowing Rock. You could see it from the gift shop, so, I passed on the $7 fee. I grabbed a half pound of bad sliced pork at Hannah's BBQ in Lenoir NC. Like they took that sliced tenderloin you get at the market and cooked that. I expected a hunk of cooked pork that they then slice. You know. Like human beings do. I seem to be channeling John Mulaney. I topped that off with a terrible STP Dipper (rb and t) at a place called Groucho's Deli (that turned out to be a chain) in Irmo SC. Slept there at a Hyatt Place for $113. Since I came back the way you might drive there (Boone), I will tell you it in reverse. 95N - 26N (to Columbia) - 77N (to Charlotte) - 85W (to Gastonia) - 321N. Pretty easy. Roads weren't tricky. Only possible issues could be very near Boone and then on the roads to the resorts. Those are still well used and modern and not very hilly. It's a good vacation. Skiing isn't that shabby either. Especially at these prices and being able to avoid the friendly skies.